I have all these opinions bumping around my head, figured I get them out and hopefully help some people in their choice of books. If you have any questions as to where and how I get these books, please don't hesitate to ask.

A Love Surrendered

Orphaned in Iowa, Annie Kennedy has moved to Boston to live with her aunt and is embracing the city life. With a new name and a wide-open future, she’s ready to grow up and break away from her small town roots. She quickly gets involved with a fast crowd at Ocean Pier and gets pulled deeper into a world full of rule breakers and mischief makers. Determined to grow up and break away from her good-girl persona she had before, Annie manages to get herself into a lot of trouble, but she can’t get away from the good girl she doesn’t want to be.

Steven O’Connor is battling guilt and doesn’t want to be near an innocent girl, let alone be responsible for one. From the moment Steven meets Annie, he knows he has to get her away from the Ocean Pier scene before her innocence is destroyed forever, and he’s going to do it whether she likes it or not. There’s just one problem, he can’t seem to get her out of his head and after taking someone else’s innocence he’s not going to give himself the chance to destroy hers too. Now he just has to figure out how to get her out of his head and life for good.

When their attraction grows instead of wane, they have to figure out if they want to take the plunge into a relationship or if they want to risk never finding love. Annie wants to see where they lead, but she knows that she will eventually have to tell Steven a huge secret that could ruin everything they have and destroy any chance of a future together. Steven is hesitant to get involved because of a past that is riddled with heartbreak and ruined innocence. Together, they have to find out if a love surrendered is really the best way.

Will Steven be able to control himself in his weekday area or will he ruin someone else’s innocence and bring more guilt on his head? Will Annie be able to tell Steven her big secret or will she chicken out? Will Steven handle it well when he finds out her big secret or will he leave her and all they have? Will they discover that a relationship is better with God in the center or will they follow what they want and ruin each other in the process?
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For me and all Julie Lessman fans, this book is bittersweet. It’s another wonderful book with the O’Connor family, but it’s also a goodbye to the family we all have become attached to. However, though this family was a start for us all, I know that Julie Lessman will move on to another series and another family that we will all fall in love with like we have the O’Connors. And I don’t know about you but I’m excited to see what else this fantastic author can come up with to keep me wishing for my own stubborn and handsome hero.

As far as this book goes, this is possibly the best one by this author yet. For years I’ve staunchly kept her first book, A Passion Most Pure, as her best book and now, I’d have to say this book is either ahead of that book or at least tied for first. I never thought I’d say that, but the author gave me the passion I want and expect, the drama I hoped for, and the storyline that is typical for her. I couldn’t help but fall in love with Annie and Steven’s characters and the romance that developed completely stole my heart.

The romance is something that I’ve come to expect from this author and incomparable to any other romance author out there. She gives you passion and heat, while keeping it faith-based at the same time. In this book she also gives a great example for purity until marriage as well, making this book perfect for women struggling with this issue. If you’re looking for a book heavy on the passion, then this book is definitely good for you and is a good alternative to those drugstore romance novels.

One thing I love about this author, besides the romance, is that she always gives the reader an unexpected twist that leaves you reeling and this book is no different. This was the best twist yet and it actually left me with my mouth hanging open and my eyes huge. She gave me a huge twist that made me wonder if the book was really going to have a happy ending. One thing I know this author is good at is her monkey wrenches. Like her romances, the twists in her books are incomparable to anyone else, easily making her an author that is at the top of my list.

Like I said before, this book is a bittersweet moment for me, all fans of this author, and possibly even the author. We all will be saying goodbye to the O’Connors with sadness and excitement to see what else this author can conjure up. If you haven’t read anything from this author, I highly recommend you start at the beginning and experience this amazing author. She’s too good of an author to pass up. She has come a long way from her first book and has become a polished author that I expect to see someday on the New York Times bestselling list. Try reading her books whether new or old and see what I’m talking about, you won’t be sorry.

Overall, this is a fantastic conclusion to family we’ve all come to love. I don’t recommend this for younger readers, but for those of you who want a very passionate romance, you should definitely turn to this author for that need. I give this book a five out of five.

*I received a complimentary copy of this book from Revell in exchange for this review. All opinions expressed are my own.*